AZED CROSSWORD 1676

CRINGE-MAKING

1.  J. Grimes: Ginger McCain splashed out a thousand for colt of very little merit (anag. with K for c; ref. racehorse trainer).

2.  C. G. Millin: Phone in church and chatter about family, causing great embarrassment (ring in CE + kin in mag).

3.  R. Hesketh: Having to tinkle during Church Assembly can be acutely embarrassing (ring in CE + making).

VHC

M. Barley: Mega unseemly – for example, grandad being into music’s latest band? (anag. + kin, all in c ring, & lit.).

J. R. Beresford: —— grime can unsettle one occupying the throne (anag. + king, & lit.; ref. lavatory graffiti).

C. Boyd: What’s sickening? Rattled France’s second nicking game (anag. incl r; ref. Euro 2004).

C. J. Brougham: Grig’s happy with nickname ‘Squirmy’ (anag.; happy = mildly drunk).

C. J. & M. P. Butler: Sickening concoction of double gin and marc with two parts of sake (anag. incl. gin, gin, (sa)ke).

P. Cargill: Stomach-turning onset of Kray gang in crime wave (anag. incl. K).

C. A. Clarke: Concealing joint, Mick Jagger, ninety, half cut, is prancing about – it’s —— (anag. incl. nin(ety) less J, & lit.).

M. Coates: Uncontrolled smacking in rage, as about to be banned, is sickening (anag. less as (rev.)).

Ms B. Coventry: It’s SO embarrassing – with woe, we could see a Greek win coming! (comp. anag.; ref. Euro 2004).

C. M. Edmunds: God-awful bells in church – who brought up Martin Luther? (ring in CE + ma King).

R. R. Greenfield: Knight detected in unseemly grimace before HM: that could be —— (N in anag. + king, & lit.).

C. R. Gumbrell: Segment of worm found in cold mutton, a piece of poor quality (ring in c em a king).

J. C. Leyland: Licking German in war – Basil’s ultimate unmentionable? Quite (anag. less l; ref. classic ‘Fawlty Towers’ episode).

D. F. Manley: Rank comedian’s gig b—— awful – so that bad? (comp. anag. & lit.).

C. J. Morse: Crown jewel hiding in pocket, leading to a top royal’s shaming (in in cr. gem + a king).

D. R. Robinson: A doubly no good limerick with line blue-pencilled could possibly be this (anag. incl. ng ng less l, & lit.).

J. R. Tozer: Greeks won, in magic form: we so harshly lost it’s —— (anag. less anag., & lit.; ref. Euro 2004).

Mrs M. Vincent: Whatever’s band in church performing? It’s excruciating! (ring in CE + making).

A. J. Wardrop: What ginger camiknickers, half falling off, might be? (anag. incl. camikn(ickers), & lit.).

C. Weston: Ginger Mick, an oddball likely to leave Simply Red (anag.; ref. pop singer M. Hucknall).

R. J. Whale: What’s most ——? Possibly R. Atkinson g-gem when let loose with mic (comp. anag. & lit.; ref. Ron A.’s racist gaffe on air).

G. H. Willett: Excruciating contralto with bell-like sound on rising note and painful to the ear (c + ring + me (rev.) + ‘aching’).

HC

D. Appleton, M. Barker, M. Bath, Mrs F. A. Blanchard, L. W. Blott, E. J. Burge, Dr J. Burscough, B. Burton, D. A. Campbell, D. C. Clenshaw, G. Clyde, N. Connaughton, M. J. Corlett, E. Cross, R. Dean, P. Dendy, N. C. Dexter, V. Dixon, J. Dromey, H. Freeman, J. P. Guiver, D. A. Harris, C. Hobbs, M. Hodgkin, R. Jacks, F. P. N. Lake, P. Long, R. K. Lumsdon, L. Mackinnon, N. MacSweeney, W. F. Main, P. W. Marlow, Ms E. Metcalfe, Ms M. Moore, T. J. Moorey, T. D. Nicholl, F. R. Palmer, R. J. Palmer, D. Parfitt, D. Price Jones, W. Ransome, N. Roper, G. C. Rosser, M. Sanderson, N. G. Shippobotham, P. L. Stone, P. Thacker, Mrs J. E. Townsend, A. P. Vick, J. C. Waterton, M. H. E. Watson, Ms B. Widger, J. S. Witte, M. J. Wright, Dr E. Young.
 

ANNUAL HONOURS LIST (13 COMPETITIONS)
1. D. F. Manley (2 prizes, 10 VHCs); 2. C. J. Morse (1,10); 3 (equal). V. Dixon (3,5), C. R. Gumbrell (2,7), Dr I. S. Fletcher (3,5); 6 (equal). M. Barley (3,4), N. C. Dexter (2,6); 8 (equal). J. R. Beresford (0,9), J. P. Guiver (1,7), R. Phillips (1,7), J. R. Tozer (1,7); 12 (equal). R. R. Greenfield (2,4), R. Hesketh (1,6), J. C. Leyland (1,6); 15 (equal). C. J. Brougham (1,5), C. G. Millin (1,5); 17 (equal). C. A. Clarke (0,6), D. Robinson (1,4), A. J. Wardrop (1,4); 20 (equal). E. J. Burge (0,5), B. Burton (0,5), D. C. Clenshaw (0,5), H. Freeman (0,5), J. Grimes (1,3), T. J. Moorey (0,5), G. H. Willett (1,3), Dr E. Young (1,3); 28 (equal). N. Connaughton (2,0), P. R. Lloyd (1,2), R. J. Palmer (1,2), N. G. Shippobotham (0,4), P. L. Stone (0,4). CONSOLATION PRIZES
J. R. Beresford, C. A. Clarke, E. J. Burge, B. Burton, D. C. Clenshaw, H. Freeman, T. J. Moorey, N. G. Shippobotham, P. L. Stone.
 

 
Comments
 
256 entries, no mistakes. Favourite clue: PEA SOUP (‘Go round a bit in a fog?’), with 23 receiving at least one mention. PEA SOUP is one of the many entries in Chambers whose form has changed in the current edition, either from being hyphened to being shown as two separate words, or vice versa. When constructing grids I make much use of Chambers Words, which is based on the old edition of the dictionary, so this can be tiresome, in that I may indicate such compounds as two words when they are now given as one or (again) vice versa. I’m trying to minimize these lapses and to indicate the changes between editions when I spot them, but the odd one will be overlooked, I fear. TATIN, which a number of you said you couldn’t find, represents a related problem. It’s in Chambers as the second part of TARTE TATIN (a reasonably well known French confection, I think) but on its own in Chambers Words (which does not list multi-word compounds). In this case I should most definitely have given you a hint as to where it could be found, and I apologize for not having done so.
 
CRINGE-MAKING proved quite popular as clue-words go. It doesn’t have too many synonyms in its sense of ‘embarrassing’, but the other (perhaps less common?) senses acknowledged by Chambers widened the scope considerably. (A rather earthy friend of mine is fond of describing cringe-making situations as ‘buttock-clenching’, a splendidly graphic word that has yet to make it into respectable dictionaries!) It was interesting and amusing to see what sort of things you regard as cringe-making. Ken grimacing turned up a great deal, as did the blush-inducing activities of the mad Germanic monarch, the latter of these being especially painful to mark down purely on the grounds of frequency.
 
My remarks last month on the use of initial letters in clues, with particular reference to Mr Freeman’s VHC Spoonerism clue ‘Bricklayers using this’ll initially stop making Tower of Pisa wobble’, provoked a number of puzzled reactions. I described this way of handling ‘left-over’ letters as weak (not bad or unsound), and would add that the more letters are treated in this way in a single clue the weaker the clue becomes, especially in the context of an Azed competition, where the standard of clues submitted is always very high. We all, myself as much as anyone, include references to letters in initial, medial, final, alternate, etc positions, and these are well-established conventions, but I do regard them as relatively weak and to be resorted to when nothing else seems acceptable.
 
Many congratulations to Mr Manley for regaining the top spot in the annual honours list, having performed strongly all year, and salutations to all the others named above. I hope I’ve got my sums right, in the absence of Ron Dearden’s services. (Remember that No. 1,663 was excluded from the reckoning because of the postal difficulties at the time.) I’ve received several kind offers from solvers willing to take on RVD’s role, and hope to pick one shortly. No further volunteers need apply.